Vettel wipes the slate clean

Triple world champion Sebastian Vettel is not be thinking about his previous triumphs as he embarks on another Formula 1 campaign, believing it would counter-productive.

Vettel has won the last three world titles and is once again the favourite to be crowned champion at the end of the 2013 season.

The German will be looking to get his title defence off to a strong start in the Rolex Australian Grand Prix but he insists he will not be thinking about his previous success when he sits on the grid in Melbourne.

"I think the secret is not to think about what happened in the last three years," Vettel said. "The first title was very, very special. After that you don't have that pressure any more, you've proved to yourself more than anyone else that you can do so.

"After that obviously we had two fantastic years again - very different to each other - but as I said we don't really think about what happened last year or the last three years.

"We are here; we have zero points on our side at the moment, same as everyone else so everyone has the same opportunities. The cars didn't really change, last year we saw it was really close so I don't really expect it to be any different to last year, if anything even a little bit tighter so it will be crucial to make the most out of every single race."

Whatever the outcome in Melbourne, Vettel knows the season will not be won or lost on the first weekend.

"I think it's going to be a long year, obviously we're looking forward to this weekend - this is the first of many - but I think we've seen the last couple of years, last year in particular, that it's a long season and every race is very important. This is the place we start but then there is many other places coming," he added.

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